New Paltz, N.Y. - March 8, 2018 - The Springfield College men's volleyball team picked up its 20th-straight victory of the season as it topped rival New Paltz in four sets on Thursday night in the Hawk Center in a rematch of the last two NCAA Division III Championship matches.  The Pride won by the set scores of 25-20, 25-19, 20-25, 25-17.

Springfield is now 20-1 on the season and has won 54 of the 55 sets against Division III opponents this season.  The Hawks were able to snap Springfield's NCAA men's volleyball record of most consecutive set victorie, as the Pride had run its total to 43 before dropping the third set tonight.

Kenny Lawrence (Longwood, Fla.) produced a team-best 12 kills for the Pride on the right side, while Sergio Figueroa Velez (San Juan, Puerto Rico) recorded eight kills, five aces, and four digs.  Joseth Irizarry Feliciano (Adjuntas, Puerto Rico) notched seven kills and a match-high six blocks in the middle and Eli Gabriel Irizarry Pares (Bayamon, Puerto Rico) handed out 40 assists for the visitors.

The Pride hit .385 in the opener, with Ricardo Padilla Ayala (San Juan, Puerto Rico) notching kills on all six of his swings.  After jumping out to a 7-3 advantage, Springfield fell victim to a 6-2 surge as the Hawks evened the set a 9-9.  Figueroa Velez then accounted for a kill and ace as part of a 3-0 burst to give Springfield a cushion that it would not relinquish as it coasted to a 25-20 win.

Figueroa Velez ripped four aces in the second set, a frame in which the Pride needed only eight kills to win, 25-19. After racing out to an 11-4 lead, Springfield's lead ballooned to 19-8 following on of New Paltz's six attack errors.  The hosts would get as close as five only to have Lawrence rip a kill for the two-set lead after a 25-19 triumph.

Lawrence had seven of Springfield's 11 kills in the third set, a frame in which the Pride hit just .100.  After taking an early 12-11 lead, Springfield surrendered the next three points and eventually dropped its first set since January 29 with a 25-20 setback.

In the fourth, Irizarry Feliciano delivered four kills and four blocks to pace Springfield's efforts.  Even at 12-all, three-straight attack errors by the Hawks, thanks to a pair of Irizarry Feliciano blocks, allowed the Pride to open up a 15-12 advantage. Springfield didn't let up and raced away with a 25-17 fourth-set victory, with Figueroa Velez and Irizarry Feliciano combining for a block as the exclamation point on the win.

Springfield will now go on Spring Break before returning back to Western Massachusetts where it will clash with local-foe Elms on Thursday, March 22 at 6 pm.